Obama’s gun control road ahead: Half of Congress has received cash from NRA

As President Obama continues to lay the groundwork for whatever gun control proposals he wants to launch through Congress, here’s what he’s up against: half of the current House members have received a campaign contribution from the National Rifle Association; 47 percent of the 435 members got some cash during the 2012 campaign.

Over in the Senate 42 of its occupants got an NRA contribution during the 2012 cycle; half of the current senators have received one at some point during their careers, according to the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation. Plenty more where that came from as the NRA. It has 4 million members and an annual budget of $200 miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilllion.

One California Democrat who recently felt the power of the NRA — or rather, the lack of it — was conservative Central Valley Democratic Rep. Joe Baca, a longtime gun rights supporter, who recently lost his seat. He was targeted by anti-gun NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose super PAC spent $3.3 million on defeating Baca, one of several pro-gun legislators the mayor focused on ousting.